Till The End
by NeverlandDust
Summary: The Riverton Eight's last 15 birthdays have always been semi-normal besides the midnight meetings in the woods to keep the Ripper from coming back. Who knew the 16th would be different? Bug/OC
1. It's Been A Long Time Coming

**Disclaimer: I only own Lynette.**

* * *

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve!" Brandon held out his hand to the town behind us that was across the lake. "The lights out!"

Everyone cheered and clapped their hands when the lights finally switched off and left the buildings in darkness. The only sources of light left were the multiple candles that we had set around us in our gathering spot in the woods.

"Midnight!"

I shifted my weight to my other leg as I glanced around at everyone who was cheering.

Midnight meant it was the next day, which means it was the Riverton Eight's birthdays. I didn't feel any need to cheer, but not because I wasn't happy that I was finally 16. No, it was because of what else this day was known for. It was Ripper Day.

"Hey," I flinched slightly when Alex elbowed me in the rib before raising an eyebrow at him expectantly. "Where's Bug?"

I shrugged, not bothering to look around since I knew that Bug wasn't there. "How would I know?" I whispered back.

"Because of the massive crush you've had on him since we were kids?" Alex teased with a smirk.

My face turned red as I faced forward and made my crossed arms tighter. "Shut up, Alex." I grumbled, getting a laugh.

"As you all know," Brandon began, making everyone immediately quiet down and put their attention back on him. "Ripper Day marks two things. One of them bad, one of them good. The good part is, it's the birthday of eight of us here born 16 years ago tonight." He pointed at the blind boy who stood to the left of me. "Jerome King. Hey, Jerome." There was some whooping which Jerome acknowledge with a smile and a wave. Brandon turned to me. "Lynette Courie, AKA Mouse." I scowled at him but gave a tight smile to the others behind me.

I squeak one time in first grade after he asks me to move seats, and I get a nickname for life. It wasn't my fault that back then I could barely talk to anyone but my mom! Of course, the name was still applicable to my life today since I only talk to my four, kind-of-but-not-really, friends, Jerome, Alex, Bug, and Jay.

"Alex Dunkelman." I could see some distaste in Brandon's face, but Alex ignored it and lifted a hand with a smirk. "Jay Chan, with a new Ripper puppet tonight." Jay pointed his fingers up and nodded to all the cheering. "Bug Hellerman…" Everyone glanced around to see if they could find the teen. "Hellerman?"

I turned my head to the bushes when I heard some cracking and saw Bug walking out of them.

"It's about time!" Alex joked before sharing a laugh with Jerome. Bug stopped on my right between Alex and I, and I gave Bug a small reassuring smile which he responded with one of his own. I bit my lip and faced forward, hoping that he couldn't see the redness in my cheeks.

"Better late than never, I suppose." Brandon mumbled.

"Where've you been?" Alex asked Bug quietly.

"Sleeping." Bug answered just as quiet, taking a few awkward glances at Brandon who chuckled for a moment.

"It's okay, Bug takes a little longer because he's a little slower, I guess." I scowled at Brandon's dig as everyone laughed, including Jerome. "Moving on to Penelope Bryte over there, by the ambulance," Brandon pointed at the red-headed girl who was separated from the group. "who, incidentally, knows God. They speak daily. And to the beautiful and gorgeous Brittany Cunningham." He gestured fondly to the blonde beside him who smiled sarcastically at everyone before dropping it and shaking her head at him. "And last, but, of course, not least-"

"Brandon O'Neil!" Everyone shouted as Brandon opened and closed his jacket with a smile at the cheering.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you very much. Pleasure. Now, it's time for the bad part, people." Brandon stated with the smile now gone from his face. "We of the Riverton Eight have had to share our birthday with a monster, the serial killer Abel Plenkov, who died at midnight the day we were born. It's the Ripper. "

The crowd 'Ooohed' at that which I thought was ridiculous. We do this every year. You'd think everyone would get tired of it since it's the same thing over and over again, but nope. If anyone even mentioned canceling it, everyone would argue 'But it's tradition' or 'You don't want the Ripper to get you, do you?' I would know considering that I brought it up to the boys and they all immediately rejected the idea. Well, everyone except for Bug.

"Legend has it that we, the Riverton Eight, are the mirrors of Abel Plenkov's personalities. The ones that turned the Ripper in. And that the Ripper still wants revenge. So Abel Plenkov is dead, but his ghost isn't."

I glanced from the corner of my eye at Bug and saw that he was listening to Brandon with wide eyes, a sure sign that he was getting freaked out. I shifted my body slightly so I could nudge him with my elbow which was our way of comforting each other since neither of us really liked being touched. A small smile was sent my way before it disappeared as he continued to listen to Brandon's tale.

"No, it lurks underneath the old railroad bridge. You've seen it. It sleeps in the river. It roams the darkest corners of the woods, just waiting for the next Ripper Day to come around. Because, on that day, our birthday, tonight, the devil has told him that he can take his revenge. But he can only come out of the river at this spot." Brandon turned and pointed at the lake right behind him. "And every year, since we have been able, one of us Riverton Eight has volunteered to drive him back into the river where he belongs. And tonight is no exception." He suddenly smiled. "And I, personally, have chosen to volunteer…" I raised an eyebrow at him as he raised his hand.

Seriously? Brandon was volunteering himself? He usually loves having other people do it, especially so he can make fun of them afterwards.

Alex glanced at me with a smirk of disbelief, telling me that he also didn't believe what Brandon was doing.

"…to volunteer Bug Hellerman, that is." Brandon pointed at the boy next to me who stiffened. "It's your turn, Bug. All the rest of us have done it!" He spoke over the noise of the cheering. I frowned and watched Bug carefully. "We will now summon the Ripper from the river!" Brandon dramatically pointed at the water behind him. "If he appears yet again, then Bug must slay him, or we'll all die!"

Bug glanced around in alarm at this information as everyone started taunting him about saving them.

"Let's call him up!" Brandon turned sideways to face the water. "If you can hear me, Ripper, make yourself known!"

Everyone started shouting "Make yourself known!" repeatedly.

I, however, did not and glared at Alex when he began to chant it as well. He stopped short when he saw my look and then glanced at Bug who was silently freaking out.

They stopped chanting it, and then Brandon shouted "Fear ye the Ripper!"

"Fear ye the Ripper!"

Alex reached over us and hit Jerome on the chest when he shouted it along with the others. "Shut up!" he hissed.

Jerome furrowed his eyebrows as he turned to our general direction. "What did I do?"

"Bug's freaking out." I told him quietly.

"Fear ye the Ripper!" Brandon yelled again.

"Fear ye the Ripper!"

A sound came from the trees beside us, causing all our heads to snap in that direction.

"It's coming from the woods." Jerome said, pointing out the obvious as everyone backed away from where the noise was coming from. My eyes widened slightly at the new puppet that they had gotten. It was definitely more intimidating than the ones in the previous years.

"Whoa! Nice, Jay!" Brandon praised with a smile.

"Damn right." Jay responded proudly.

"Come on, Bug," Alex spoke without taking his eyes off the puppet and putting his hands on Bug's shoulders. "it's just a puppet. Knock it over."

"It's not the real Ripper, it's just someone in a costume. Remember that." I said quietly to Bug before backing off with Alex.

I couldn't imagine how scared he was right now. When I did it two years ago, I was shaking so bad that I could barely walk, let alone knock something over. After I had gotten the courage to go and do it, I had to sit on the ground for a few minutes so I could recover and actually be able to walk home. Brandon had a blast with that. I still get imitations of me shaking when I pass people in the halls.

"Come on! You can take it, Bug!" Jerome encouraged as Bug took staggering steps back.

"Whoa!" Brandon sung as he ran up behind Bug and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Get in there, you pussy!" He pushed him forward so that Bug was standing in front of the approaching puppet.

"Look how scared he is!" Someone laughed after seeing Bug's face.

"Push him over!" Alex exclaimed with a smile.

"Down on your knees, Bug!" Brandon taunted as he strolled around.

"It's just a puppet, Bug!" I reminded, quickly glancing between the fake Ripper and him. Bug seemed frozen while staring wide-eyed at the puppet that was waving its hands around him.

"Get him! What are you doing?" Brandon whined after seeing that Bug wasn't making any efforts to knock it over.

Bug spun around to us with a terrified expression. "I can't do this!"

"But you must, or we'll die!" Brandon dramatically announced as Bug turned back around.

I swallowed and uncrossed my arms while glancing around nervously before focusing on Bug. "Bug, you just have to knock it down! That's it!"

"She's right. Come on, Bug! You just have to knock him down!" Alex agreed right before sirens were heard coming towards us.

_"This is the police! Disperse immediately!"_

"Cops!" Penelope shouted.

I ignored the words that the cops were shouting and ran forward with Alex so we could get Bug and hide in the woods.

"Watch the tree, Jerome." Alex advised as we continued to bolt forward. I was suddenly rammed into by Jerome which made me slam into Alex who ran into Bug who fell into the lake.

Everyone quickly apologized along with some laughing as we pulled Bug out from the water and then ran further into the trees before crouching down behind a log.

"What the fuck was that? Why did they stop us?" Alex laughed as Jay and I peeked over the trunk to watch the cops. Jay shushed him.

"Go home!" A police officer shouted. "Ripper Day has been officially canceled."

"They say that every year." I scoffed with an eye roll, sitting back down along with Jay.

"Yeah, but we better just sit and wait." Jay smiled while taking off his jacket. He did a double-take at Bug who was staring blankly ahead. "Why so glum, chum?"

"I failed." Bug answered in monotone.

"Because you couldn't kill him?" Jerome clarified as Jay put his jacket around Bug who was soaking wet.

"Now we're all going to die, and it's my fault."

I wanted to roll my eyes at Bug's melodramatic statement but didn't because of the wounded puppy expression he had on his face. He honestly thought that he had cursed us all just because he didn't knock down a stupid puppet.

"No, it's not, Bug. You not knocking down a puppet isn't going to kill us all." I reassured.

"That's bullshit Brandon made up." Alex added. "If he was so worried about it, he should have killed it himself." I nodded in agreement.

"That puppet was scary." Bug muttered, glancing over at Jay who grinned.

"Thanks."

"And the coat was creepy. You added some moss and grass and shit, right?" Alex smirked.

"Yeah, man," Jay whispered as if it was obvious. "he lived under the river for, like, 16 years. He's primeval, baby!"

"How long did it take to design it?" I questioned curiously, leaning forward slightly so I could see him from over Bug.

Jay shrugged. "Few months."

"If he rode in an ambulance on the way to the hospital, how did he get the coat and everything?" Bug asked him.

"Well, in my version, the day after Plenkov 'supposedly' drowned, his house was burglarized, right? And he took the boots, the coat, his whole outfit."

"Why would a burglar just take clothes?"

"A burglar wouldn't, Bug."

"But Plenkov would if he was still alive!" Jerome finished with a smile after he understood.

Jay grinned and held a hand out to him. "Exactly!"

"The Ripper's alive?" Bug glanced at us in alarm.

"No!" I argued.

"Could be."

I glared at Alex for his answer. We were supposed to be calming Bug down, not making sure he didn't sleep for the next week.

"I thought you said he was just a ghost!" Bug pointed out frantically.

"No, he's dead." Alex whispered.

"No. Not necessarily." Jay objected. "They never found his body."

"And nobody really knew him or his wife very well. They were new to Riverton. And, Plenkov could look completely different after 16 years! Like, cosmetic surgery, hair transplants, Weight Watchers." Jerome added. He was clearly enjoying this way too much.

"And he could have changed his name." Jay continued, causing me to shake my head and run a hand through my hair. "Snuck back into Riverton to get his revenge this year."

"He could be Principal Pratt!" Jerome hit my shoulder repeatedly with a smile.

Yup. Definitely enjoying this too much.

"Guys, this is ridiculous! The Ripper is dead." I finally hissed, dropping my hand. I scowled at them before glancing over the log at the cops. I sighed. "I have to get home before Mom notices I'm gone." I looked at the boy next to me who was still staring at the ground. "Bug." He lifted his eyes and turned his head towards me, vaguely looking in my direction. "Don't listen to anything these guys are saying. Plenkov isn't alive and hasn't been for 16 years."

He licked his lips and nodded. "Thanks." He glimpsed at me before quickly looking away.

I sighed, getting up slightly to check the cops weren't looking before crouching down and running quietly into the woods.


	2. And The Table's Turned Around

**Disclaimer: I only own Lynette.**

* * *

**Lynette POV**

Luckily I got home in time before my mom could wake up and notice that I'd left, but, honestly, I think that she knew that I went out every year on this day but just didn't say anything. Either that or she was just _very_ oblivious because I hadn't been exactly stealthy in my younger years.

I settled into bed and was half asleep when the vibration of my phone caused my eyes to pop open before blinking in a daze.

What…?

My hand shot out and moved around the side table before grabbing the phone and turning it towards me, squinting at the bright light from the screen. I sighed and clicked answer when I saw who it was.

"Hello?" I asked groggily while closing my eyes and falling back on my bed, pushing the hair out of my face.

"_Lyn_?"

I smiled slightly. Bug was the only one who called me by my name instead of Mouse since he knew that it annoyed me. I once asked him if he wanted me to call him Adam instead of Bug but said that it didn't matter because he didn't mind his nickname.

"Yeah, Bug?"

_"Are you awake?"_

I chuckled tiredly. "Yeah, I'm awake. Why are you calling at-" I glanced at the clock and mentally groaned at the time. "- two in the morning?"

There was a pause. "_I-I don't know. I guess I just couldn't sleep and wanted to see if you were awake_." He had his scolded puppy voice on, and any annoyance I had disappeared in that moment. God the things this boy does to me.

"Well," I sighed and stared at the ceiling. "why can't you sleep? Because of the Ripper thing?"

"_No- Well, I mean, yeah, but there's also that project that me and Alex have to do tomorrow. I was so freaked out about tonight that I forgot to work on it."_

"What are you going to do?"

_"We were going to make a sock puppet of a California Condor, but Jay said that it would put the class to sleep and that we needed shock and awe."_

"Well, you could try to make a poster or something. It's not huge, but it's better than a sock puppet, I guess. I mean, it's not like you can make a full body costume of one or something." I chuckled but stopped when I didn't hear him join me. "Bug?"

"_What?"_ he asked, sounding as if I just broke him from a thought. _"Right. Yeah. I gotta go. I'll see you tomorrow."_

"Wait, Bug!"

_"Yeah?"_

"Uh," I bit my lip. "Merry birthday- Wait, no!" I shook my head sharply and grimaced. "Happy birthday." I sighed. "I meant happy birthday."

There was a small chuckle. "_Merry birthday, Lyn. See you at school._"

Then he hung up.

I groaned and pulled the phone away from my ear. Merry birthday? Really? What is wrong with me? Happy birthday is two words, and I couldn't even get it right. Now he probably thinks I'm crazy.

I let out a breath while curling up on my side. I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep even though I knew that it wasn't possible, especially after that phone call.

* * *

**Third-Person POV**

"You can have him if you want, after tonight." Bug offered to Alex after they had stationed Edgar up on a tree in the woods. He saw Alex's look and clarified. "Edgar."

"Seriously?" Alex asked in disbelief.

"Yeah. It's your birthday."

"Well, thanks. I should get you a present." Alex stopped walking and faced him with a smirk. "How about a weekend in Las Vegas with Brittany Cunningham?"

Bug smiled slightly and shifted his grip on the bag that was slung over his shoulder. "Brittany doesn't know I'm alive."

"You're right." Alex sighed in fake disappointment, glancing off to the side before he eyed Bug and slowly smirked. "But Mouse does."

Bug furrowed his eyebrows at him with a hint of a smile. "Lynette? What about her?"

"Come on, Bug!" Alex exclaimed in desperation. "She's been crazy about you for years! It's actually borderline creepy."

"No, she isn't." Bug shook his head although his smile didn't go away.

Alex straightened up and crossed his arms. "What's it going to take for you to see that she's totally into you?"

"For her to say it." Bug responded, dropping the heavy bag onto the floor.

"You know Mouse won't do that. She's practically mute."

"No, she's not." Bug defended with a scowl. "She talks fine."

"With you maybe." Alex scoffed before sighing. "Well, if you won't go to Vegas with Brittany or Mouse, my present will just have to be helping you with that." He gestured to the bag on the floor.

"Yeah, that's just as good." Bug groaned as he handed it off to Alex.

"It's heavy." Alex commented, testing the weight before they started walking again.

"It's all the fluids."

"Fluids?"

* * *

**Lynette POV**

"Mouse!" I stopped walking towards the school doors and turned around to Alex and Bug who were catching up to me. "So, how's your birthday been going so far?" Alex questioned when they stood in front of me.

I shrugged. "Like any other. What about you two?" I glanced between them.

"Well, Bug got a new phone," Alex yanked the orange cell phone from Bug's hand and held it out to me. "and would like you to put your number in it."

I looked at the cell phone before at Bug who was gaping at Alex who was smirking.

"What? I never-" Bug stammered while frantically glancing between us until he settled on me. "You-You don't have to if you don't want to." He winced when Alex elbowed him. "I-I mean, I-I want you to- But I already have your number memorized –" His eyes widened in alarm. "Wait! I didn't mean it how it sounded-" He groaned and closed his eyes before violently rubbing his forehead.

I just stood there like an idiot with my mouth open because Bug _freaking_ Hellerman just admitted to memorizing my number. _He_ memorized _my_ number! He, who did not have to, memorized the number that he needed in order to talk to me! Holy crap. This birthday just got a lot better.

"Well," Alex slowly drawled out while watching us. "I didn't know that Bug had memorized your number otherwise I wouldn't have asked, and we could have avoided this whole awkward situation."

I snapped out of my fantasies of Bug asking me out on a date and quickly grabbed the phone from Alex before placing my number in there.

"Hello, boys and Mouse." I lifted my head and widened my eyes when I saw Brandon strolling over to us.

There was only one reason he would be talking to us at school.

"Bug. This is a three." Brandon held up three fingers before punching Bug in the shoulder, earning a gasp from the boy as he cradled his new bruise. Brandon turned to Alex. "Dunkelman, this is an eight." He grabbed Alex's jacket before landing a blow to his stomach, causing Alex to drop to the ground. Brandon then turned to me and pointed. "You got lucky, Courie. No punches for you today." I didn't say anything and just continued to stare at him in fear. "Dunkelman," He looked down at Alex who was holding his stomach. "stay away from the Fang Zone." He focused on Bug. "And you, you stay away from him." He gestured to Alex.

I watched Brandon's back as he grabbed his backpack and started heading towards school. We seemed to be in the clear before Alex had to go and open his sarcastic mouth. "Thanks, Brandon. Felt good."

"Ass-wipe." Was his response.

"Not as good as your mother felt last night, though." My eyes widened at Alex's comment as Brandon stopped walking and threw his backpack to the floor. He started stalking towards us, and Alex hurried to get up.

"You just bought yourself a 20."

"Brandon O'Neil." I turned to the new voice and saw Penelope coming over. Oh, here we go. "Do not bring the wrath of Jehovah down upon you." She snapped when she stood in front of him. "Your sins are already a stench in the nostrils of an angry God."

Bug glanced over at me in bewilderment, and I just shrugged. Penelope had a whispered conversation with Brandon which ended in him threatening Alex before stomping off. Alex just flipped him the bird while Penelope practically skipped over to Bug with a smile.

I couldn't contain the eye roll that escaped me when she greeted him.

"Jealous?" I heard Alex tease. I glared down at him before holding out Bug's phone.

"No. Give this to him. I have to get to my locker."

"You're definitely jealous." He smirked but took the phone anyway. I took a peek at Bug and Penelope and saw her kiss his cheek. "Steam would be coming out of your ears if this was a cartoon."

I did something uncharacteristic and snapped "Shut up." before practically running to get inside.

* * *

**Third-Person POV**

Penelope left, and Bug watched with furrowed eyebrows at Lyn's back as she bolted up to the school.

"Why did she leave?" Bug asked Alex, sounding curious and slightly hurt.

"Um, maybe because Penelope just marked you right in front of her?" Alex responded sarcastically while pushing himself up with a grimace. This made Bug even more confused. Alex gave him a look, keeping a hand to his stomach. "Come on, Bug. There's no way you can be that naïve."

"Naïve about what?"

Alex scoffed with a chuckle, shaking his head. "Two girls crazy about you, and you don't even realize it." He patted Bug's unhurt shoulder before handing him his cell phone. "Crazy bastard."

They started walking, and Bug opened the phone to check the contacts to make sure that the number was in there. He smiled at the smiley face she'd put next to her name.

"Why do you think Penelope says weird things like that?" He questioned, putting the phone in his pocket.

"Parallel universe, baby."


	3. Cause One Of Us Is Going

**Disclaimer: I only own Lynette**

* * *

I spent the whole day obsessing over the fact that I had put a smiley face next to my name in his phone. What was I _thinking_? That was way too forward. It must have been the adrenaline from hearing that he'd memorized my number.

I felt a blush creep up on my face as I glanced to the side at Bug who was sitting beside me in the back row of the classroom.

I still couldn't believe that he'd memorized my freaking number.

"As you know, class," Mr. Kaiser began, making me face forward again. "We're nearing the end of our reports on living creatures. Dogs, fish, honeybees." I gave Bug a concerned look when he winced and rubbed his temple. "We had an especially nice one from Brittany Cunningham last session on the butterflies of our state." I rolled my eyes. Typical topic for a girl like Brittany. It was actually pretty boring, and I almost fell asleep at my desk while she was presenting it. Then again, I don't like her so pretty much anything she does would put me to sleep. "Today's presentation will be by Adam Hellerman and Alex Denkelman. Are you boys ready?" Bug still had a grimace on his face, rubbing the side of his head. "Boys?"

"Bug." I whispered, glancing at Mr. Kaiser.

"Bug, come on." Alex urged after he got up. He nudged Bug's shoulder. "Get up!"

Bug seemed lost as he stood up and followed him to the front of the classroom.

"I believe this is yours." Mr. Kaiser pointed his glasses at a large duffle bag beside his desk. My eyes widened slightly before lowering myself down further into my seat. Oh, God no. Bug did _not_ listen to me last night, did he? I was joking!

Bug had his arm across his stomach so he could hold his sore arm as Alex lazily dragged the duffle bag to his side. "'Back from the Brink' by Adam Hellerman and Alex Dunkelman." Bug quietly told the class.

"Dunfuckleman." Brandon coughed with a smirk, causing others to laugh.

"Brandon." Mr. Kaiser warned before letting Bug continue.

"Our subject today is about a bird." Bug winced and brought a hand up to his temple again, much to my concern.

"You having another one of your migraines, Adam?" Mr. Kaiser asked. Bug shook his head in response and dropped his hand.

"Shock and awe!" I heard Alex whisper while showing Bug something that was peeking out from the top of the bag. From what I could see, it looked like a large bird head.

Oh, great, he did listen to me. If this goes terrible, then it's my fault because I gave him the idea. Stupid late night talking.

"Adam!" Mr. Kaiser snapped since Bug hadn't continued speaking. Bug suddenly straightened up and faced the class with a whole new level of self-confidence.

"Our subject today is the largest bird in North America." I raised my eyebrows in surprise at how loud and firm his voice sounded. It was really un-Bug like and creepy, but kind of hot at the same time. "Unchanged since the Pleistocene Epoch and only recently rescued from extinction. I present to you _Gymnogyps californianus_!" Alex whipped on the bird costume which was almost as creepy as Bug's voice.

"Anus." Brandon coughed again to the class' amusement. I sent him a scowl which he didn't see considering I was sitting behind him.

"Brandon, second warning." Mr. Kaiser told him sternly.

"The California Condor." Bug announced right before Alex lifted his head and brought the costume's wings out. I took a sharp intake of breath and leaned back slightly in surprise. You couldn't really see Alex's face in the bird's head which just added on to the horror feeling of it.

Bug placed his hands on Alex's shoulders. "Are you ready? Fly now." Bug pushed him forward with a smile, and everyone started exclaiming when he ran through the desks. "His wingspan is 10 feet wide." I ducked to avoid the wings when Alex jogged past me. "His body, more than four feet high. He can weigh as much as 350 parrots. As for soaring, he can glide effortlessly for days until he finds his food, which is carrion." Alex crouched down beside Bug as Bug continued talking. "A dead, stinking body crawling with maggots is ice-cream to him!"

Now I knew something was wrong. Bug would never talk about anything like that without feeling sick, and he definitely wouldn't have that look on his face when talking about it.

Mr. Kaiser must have finally thought that Bug went too far and called his name. "Bug."

Bug looked at him and returned his voice to normal. "Just showmanship, Mr. Kaiser. The facts are correct." I furrowed my eyebrows when he sent a quick smile to me before changing his voice back to the un-Bug one. "A California Condor can consume the carcass of a cow in one day."

I wrinkled my nose slightly before Brandon scoffed. "Bullshit." Alex growled at him and spun around, slowly approaching Brandon with Bug trailing behind before Bug stopped at the teacher's desk with a weird look in his eyes. Everyone started moving their desks out of Alex's way as he fake-lunged towards them until he finally got to Brandon.

"And if anyone tries to harm it, if anyone even so much as touches one of its feathers, just one…" The way Bug was talking and gesturing made me think that he was taunting Brandon into doing something to the costume.

Brandon gave in and reached forward to yank one of the feathers off. He leaned back in his chair and twisted the feather in his hand while staring smugly at Alex. "What are you going to do?" he questioned quietly and calmly. "Going to bite me, asshole?"

"Uh-uh." Alex said right before lifting the beak up and letting green fluid spray all over Brandon. I scrunched up my face in disgust and hopped out of my chair so I could go to the corner and not be hit with any of it. The class was doing the same thing and were now up against the walls so they wouldn't get hit by it.

"The bird will vomit copiously on its tormentor!" Bug shouted excitedly with a grin.

Brandon got out of his desk and pushed it aside before tackling Alex in the front of the classroom.

"And if that doesn't work, the great bird has another defense too!" Bug continued to the class, not at all phased by the fact that his best friend was getting punched repeatedly beside him. Mr. Keiser had pulled Brandon from Alex when Bug shouted "Bottle two, Alex!" Brown liquid came from the back-end of the costume and onto Brandon's foot.

"What the hell is that?" Brandon exclaimed angrily while kicking his legs so he could back away from Alex.

"And that is why no one should ever screw with the California Condor!" Bug shouted while pointing down at Alex who got kicked twice by Brandon who was getting lifted up by Mr. Kaiser.

"Thank you, Brandon. That felt so good!" Alex taunted with a smile as Brandon got thrown to the back of the room.

"Alex and I would like to thank you all for your kind attention." Bug suddenly lost his grin and turned his back to us while bracing the teacher's desk, dry heaving. Mr. Kaiser bolted over and took out a note which he quickly wrote on.

"Hall pass. Go!" He pushed Bug towards the door where he stumbled before disappearing into the hall. I watched the doorway in concern before connecting eyes with Alex who raised an eyebrow at me, obviously as confused about this as I was.

"Mouse," I turned my head to Brandon who was shaking with rage. He pointed at me. "you better control your boyfriend, or he'll have to live in a hospital for the rest of his life."

I didn't bother to correct him on the fact that Bug was not my boyfriend and instead glanced around at everyone who seemed close to getting sick themselves.

What the hell is going on?


	4. One Of Us Is Going Down

**Disclaimer: I only own Lynette**

* * *

Throughout the rest of the day I searched for Bug and only got glimpses of him but never got to talk to him. Disheartened by this, I walked out of the practically empty school, staring at the sidewalk in front of me before taking a glance up and spotting the boy I had searched for all day. He seemed kind of depressed as he sat on the bench with his condor outfit in the bag next to him which made me wonder what was going on.

I noticed that I had stopped walking and was now staring at him like a stalker, so I shook my head slightly before straightening up and heading towards him.

"H-Hey, Bug." I greeted nervously with a tight smile as I stopped beside the bench.

"Hey, Lyn." He responded quietly, glancing at me with a tight smile of his own.

"What- uh - what are you doing here?" I mentally winced. Get yourself together Lynette!

"Oh, I have a meeting with Principal Pratt in a few minutes."

My eyes widened as I gripped my shoulder bag strap tighter. "Is it because of the condor outfit?"

Oh, God. If I got him in trouble, I'd never forgive myself. He was just so innocent and sweet and- GAH!

"No," Bug said, breaking me from my inner turmoil. "it's because I was in the girl's bathroom and was found by Brittany. She screamed." He pressed his lips together and stared at the floor with a nod. I blinked at him.

What…

He suddenly brought his head up and met my confused gaze. "Although I'm sure the condor outfit will come up. He even called my mom to come from work. I'm doomed." He sighed and hung his head.

"I'm-I'm sure you're not doomed." I argued with quick shakes of my head. "Maybe grounded, but it's your birthday!" I gestured to him with a fake laugh and smile, causing him to look at me. "She has to go easy on you, right?"

He didn't seem reassured as he mumbled "I guess." and went back to staring at the crack on the floor.

There was a pause as I tried to figure out how to get out of this awkward mess that I'd caused before just deciding to wing it and regret it later. I cleared my throat. "So, th-that condor costume was pretty… impressive."

"It was creepy." He deadpanned without moving his gaze. "And I'll probably be killed by Brandon later if the Ripper doesn't get to me first."

Wow, he was just full of happy thoughts.

"I'm sorry!" I blurted out suddenly. I widened my eyes and automatically brought a hand to my mouth to cover it.

"Sorry?" He turned his head towards me and furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you sorry for?"

I grimaced, lowering my hand down. "Because I gave you that whole condor costume idea last night, and if I hadn't then you wouldn't be in this whole mess, and it was stupid, but, in my defense, I was half asleep and wasn't thinking. If I had then I would have gave you a more practical idea like photos or a diagram or something else so you wouldn't end up where you are now where you're obviously freaking ou-"

"It's not your fault." His quiet voice broke off my rambling.

I sucked in a much needed breath after speaking so long without pausing. "What?"

"It's not your fault." He repeated. "You were joking, I could tell, but I decided to take it seriously." He smiled slightly. "I probably would have done something just as crazy without your idea."

"…Oh." I breathed, my eyebrows raised with my mouth in a small o. "Okay then. Um," I swallowed and started slowly walking past him. I smiled awkwardly. "I guess I'll just leave you to your meeting with Pratt."

He nodded with a small smile, watching me leave. "Okay. See you, Lyn."

I nodded while turning around so I was walking backwards. "See ya, Bug. Happy birthday! Wait," I grimaced. "I already said that today."

"You actually said merry birthday." He corrected politely, but I could tell he was amused.

"Right..." I said slowly before shrugging. "At least I said it correctly this time, right?" I chuckled uncomfortably. That was when I decided that I should probably go before I did something I really regretted. "Well, bye!" I waved, abruptly turning around and practically sprinting away.


	5. I'm Not Running, It's A Little Different

**Disclaimer: I only own Lynette.**

* * *

The sound of my keyboard filled the air as I typed out my English paper that was due a few days from now.

I know, I know. It's my birthday and I'm doing homework? I'm sure you can tell I'm a party animal.

I glanced at my phone when it started ringing and saw that it was Alex. I picked it up and clicked answer before placing it to my ear.

"Hello?"

_"Lyn?"_

I furrowed my eyebrows at the use of my real name. Alex never used my real name unless it was something serious. I then registered the way he was talking. It was like he was scared out of his mind but was trying to keep his cool.

"What's wrong?" I immediately asked, straightening up in my chair.

_"They're gone. J-Jay, Penelope, Brittany, Brandon, th-they're all fucking gone! The fucking Ripper got them!"_

"What? The Ripper? What's going-"

_"Someone's killing through the Riverton Eight. Bug, Jerome, you, and me are the only ones left! He killed them all!_" His voice broke, and I could just imagine him running a hand through his hair as he paced.

I swallowed and stared at the wall as my fingers started to tap the desk nervously. "Th-they're dead? You're sure?"

_"Yes, I'm fucking sure!"_ He snapped, making me wince._ "And we're next!"_

"O-Oh, I-" My heart rate started to increase as I glanced around my room anxiously. I kept my eyes on the closed window. "What do we do? Go to the police?"

He barked out a laugh. _"Yeah, right. They're trying to get everyone to go to the church. I'm sure your mom's going to be up to tell you to go, but I say it's a bunch of bull shit."_

"What do you think we should do?"

_"I think we'd be safer with each other, you know? Watch each other's backs. We should be together right now, especially with a serial killer after us._" I didn't bother to say that it was probably a bad idea to be together because, if the killer found us, it would be a death party. "_I already called Jerome, and he's going to meet us at Bug's house."_

I turned my gaze from the window to the door. "S-So you want me to sneak away from my mom and go to you guys?"

"_We need to be together, Lynette. Let's face it, we're probably not going to survive the fucking night_."

My stomach felt like it had a cement block in it. He was right. If the killer, AKA the Ripper, managed to get through four of us already, what was stopping him from getting the rest of us? We were all doomed.

"O-Okay." I whispered. "I'll be there soon."

He breathed out a sigh. _"See you there_._"_

I hung up and continued to stare at the door when footsteps approached it and opened without a knock. Mom's worried face popped in and spotted me.

"Sweetie, grab your things. We're going to head somewhere for the night."

"Where?" I asked, mentally wincing at the lack of emotion I used.

She sighed, fidgeting and glancing around my room before focusing on me again. "Just grab your things and meet me in the car." Que the door shutting and her footsteps hurrying away.

I bit my lips, glancing from the door to the window as I began to have second thoughts. I should probably just go with my mom to the church instead of meeting the guys, but…

Visions of the guys getting murdered plagued my brain and made me sigh. If we were all going to die tonight, shouldn't we die together? I don't want them to be alone thinking that I had ditched them to save my own ass.

I shakily stood up and put my cell phone in my pocket before sliding on a jacket and carefully opening the window. I could hear my mom's car running from the front and made sure to be extra quiet as stepped onto the ground and jogged my way towards Bug's house.

If the Ripper didn't kill me tonight, then my mom was going to.

I practically bolted to Bug's house since the darkness and trees were especially creepy now that I knew what could be lurking behind them. When I got to the house, I ran to his window and furrowed my eyebrows at the rope that was beside it. Bug must have put it down for us to climb up. Or the Ripper did.

Shaking my head, I gripped the rope and began to climb it quickly before finally reaching the roof. I stood up and caught my balance until freezing when I saw something in front of me. It was large, bulky, and suspiciously looked like a body.

I gulped but carefully stepped forward without taking my eyes off it. I was a few feet away when a car zoomed past and illuminated the thing enough for me to recognize the jacket.

"Jerome!" I gasped, hurrying forward and kneeling at his side. I placed a hand on his stomach before pulling it back with a grimace when I hit something wet. I lifted my hand and widened my eyes when I saw it was dark red. Blood.

"Oh, God. Oh, God." I breathed in alarm when I saw the amount that was covering his stomach. I focused on his face where it looked like he was sleeping. "Jerome." I lightly shook his shoulder, but he didn't respond. "Jerome, come on!" I took a quick glimpse around to make sure that the Ripper wasn't behind me or something. "Jerome!" There was a loud smack as I slapped his cheek.

He jolted awake and flailed around for a moment.

"Jerome, calm down! Don't move, you've been stabbed!" I whispered quickly, trying to restrain him.

He stopped struggling and blinked up at me in bewilderment. "Lyn?" He croaked out before shaking his head. "You shouldn't be here. You need to leave."

"I'm not leaving you here." I put his arm around my shoulder.

"What are you doing?"

"Taking you into the house."

"No! You can't! The Ripper's there!"

I quickly shushed him before getting him on his feet. "Was he the one who stabbed you?" I asked while cautiously making our way towards Bug's opened window.

He gulped and nodded, stumbling along with a hand on his wound. "Alex called me and told me we should-"

"-All be together." I finished with him. It seemed a little suspicious. Alex calls both of us and says the same thing before making a rendezvous point where the Ripper just happens to show up?

I struggled to get him through the window but managed to do so.

"Do you hear that?" He whispered while staring out ahead. I listened as well and heard fighting that seemed to be happening downstairs. I could only hope that Bug and Alex were okay.

I kept an arm around his waist as I shakily reached into my pocket to grab my phone.

"What are… you doing?" Oh, no. He's gasping out words. I've seen horror films, and what comes after gasping is death.

"Calling for help." I answered, having to redial the number three times before finally getting it right due to my fingers being uncooperative. I had just placed it to my ear when Jerome's full weight was suddenly pulling me down to the ground. I tried to grab out to stable myself and ended up knocking over the lamp that was on Bug's side table.

"Oh, no." I gasped. I listened for the fighting downstairs but it had stopped. "Jerome, get up." I quickly grabbed his arms and hauled him up before practically dragging him to the closet. Footsteps were heard running up the stairs, and I fumbled with the closet door before finally sliding it open and dragging Jerome inside. I slid it closed when the person reached the floor and ran past the door.

We waited anxiously, and I glanced down at Jerome who was breathing heavily but still alive. My head snapped towards the door when I heard someone walk into the room. They slowly made their way towards the door, and I clenched a fist together and swung as hard as I could when the door opened.


	6. Now, 'Cause One Of Us Is Going

**Disclaimer: I only own Lynette.**

* * *

The person shouted in pain and held their nose while stumbling back.

My eyes widened when I saw who it was. "Bug? Oh my God, I'm so sorry!"

"Lyn?" He winced, staring at me through squinted eyes as he continued to hold his bloody nose. "What are you doing here?" His eyes trailed down to my shirt and widened. I glanced down and saw I had a bloody hand print on it. I must have touched it accidentally when I was helping Jerome.

I gasped.

Jerome!

I turned back to the closet and grabbed the teen before dragging him out.

"Jerome?" Bug exclaimed in alarm, kneeling on one side of him while I was on the other. I could tell from the way Jerome was breathing and lack of movement that he didn't have much time left and that thought alone caused tears to pool in my eyes.

"The Ripper's up here, Bug." Jerome wheezed out. "Watch out."

"It's okay, Jerome. He's gone, all right?" Bug tearfully assured as he frantically looked over Jerome's body. He met my eyes. "What are you two doing here? You're-You're supposed to be at the church."

"A-Alex called us and told us we should all four be together." I explained to him while trying to keep my tears at bay.

"Watch each other's backs." Jerome added weakly as Bug glanced behind at the doorway. "I was halfway through the window when the Ripper stabbed me."

"How did he get up here?" Bug questioned in bewilderment.

"He must have come up the rope like we did." Jerome gulped. "I passed out on the roof, and then I came to when Lyn found me."

"I-I helped him up and then brought him inside where we heard fighting." I finished.

"Was that you?"

"Him and me. Yeah, it was. He was kicking my ass, too." Bug tried to joke with a weak smile.

I shakily ran a hand through my hair. "I called the cops but then Jerome collapsed and took me down. I-I knocked over something, and then we heard someone coming and…" I gestured towards the closet where I now saw the bloody hand prints that were on the handle. My bloody hand prints.

"You guys saved my life." Bug told us gratefully while staring at Jerome.

Jerome smiled painfully and coughed. "I did?" he asked in disbelief.

"Y-Yeah, he was going to kill me, and then you-you guys distracted him." Bug smiled slightly.

"Good."

"Dude, it's going to be okay. Help is coming, all right?" Bug assured him as I lightly squeezed Jerome's shoulder.

"You fought the Ripper, Bug." Jerome managed to get out. "You're a hero, like I told you."

Bug scoffed slightly. "I'm not a hero, Jerome. I'm just…" Bug dropped his smile when he spotted that Jerome wasn't moving anymore.

"J-Jerome?" I asked quietly. I took his pulse before pressing my lips together and sitting back as tears silently trailed down my cheeks. I winced when Bug hit his fist on Jerome's chest while also crying. He picked up the kitchen knife he had and stood up to throw it on his desk. "Where's Alex?" I choked out, staring up at him as he stopped at his dresser with his back to me.

"I don't know." He responded coldly, shaking his head. "He was here before, but-"

We both jumped and turned to the window when a bang came from it. Alex was climbing through the window and slowed when he saw Bug's condition.

"What the fuck happened to you?" He asked with wide eyes as he hurried over to him. Bug just looked down at Jerome and I. "Lyn?" Alex gasped. "What happened to Jerome?" He kneeled down on the other side of him and stared at his face. He glanced at Bug and I with red eyes. "He's dead."

"The Ripper got him." Bug spoke, as if in shock. Alex stood up and went to go in front of Bug who looked at him. "A lot's happened since you've been gone, Alex. Where did you disappear to?"

"I saw Paterson pulling up outside." Alex told him while looking over his shoulder at the window before focusing on Bug again. "I ran. I hid in the woods. Then I heard gunshots, so I came back. I was afraid he shot you or something. Where is he, anyway?" He glanced around.

"Downstairs. He's dead." I wasn't shocked to see I wasn't affected at all by these words. All these things happening at once was making me numb.

"What? What happened?"

"The Ripper happened." Bug snapped. Alex pulled his head back in surprise and shook his head slightly meaning that he didn't understand. "He killed Mom, too." I took a sharp inhale of breath.

May was gone. Paterson was gone. Jerome was gone. Jay was gone. Brittany was gone. Brandon was gone. Penelope was gone.

And we're next.

Alex let out a breath. "May?" Bug just pressed his lips together. Alex looked at the floor and held up his hands, shaking his head. "I can't believe this." He put his hands to his forehead. "You went to get me a glass of water," He dropped his hands. "and now your mom, Paterson, and Jerome are dead?"

I met Bug's gaze before breaking it off and staring down at my bloody hands.

"Where were you?" My head snapped up at Alex's suspicious voice as he studied Bug.

"I ran into Penelope." Bug responded, still staring at me.

"Penelope's dead, Bug." I told him warily.

"I saw her in the bathroom mirror. She brought me the Ripper's knife, and she made me take it."

Alex and I exchanged glances as Bug turned around and shut his door. He checked it was shut before turning around to look at Alex.

"Then I heard something downstairs, and I went to come check on you, and you were gone." He furrowed his eyebrows in thought, taking steps till he was in front of Alex. "Paterson wasn't after you. He was after me. He thought that I killed Brittany and my Mom. It was the Ripper."

"And where is the Ripper now?" Alex asked cautiously.

"I guess he got away out my window. Or went out Leah's. Hers is open, too."

"He didn't go through this one. I would have heard him." I spoke, glancing between the two.

"Then Leah's. And he tried to stab me to death with his-"

"Stab you with what?" Alex interrupted, studying Bug.

"With his knife." Bug said simply.

"I thought you had his knife."

Bug blinked, looking at me before at Alex. "I did, but-"

"Did you kill them, Bug?" Alex questioned quietly.

"What?" Bug exclaimed incredulously. "No, I-" He glanced at my wary face to Alex's. "I didn't kill anybody." His voice didn't exactly scream confident.

"Not that you remember." Alex suggested with a sad frown. He took a few steps forward. "Bug, I got to tell you something. And don't get upset."

"What?" Bug asked in confusion.

"My mom told me this. Your father was first diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was 16. Just like you are now."

"What are you saying?"

"It's hereditary. Plus, you were in your dead Mom forever. Oxygen deprivation. It can make you crazy, too." Bug stared down at the floor, considering Alex's words.

"Alex, that's ridiculous. Bug's not crazy." I defended.

"Is it?" Alex questioned me with raised eyebrows before turning to Bug. "Maybe all this stuff you've been describing didn't happen exactly the way you're saying it did."

"You think I'm crazy?" Bug demanded.

"No, I don't know what I think." Alex argued, shaking his head. "But I'm not walking away. I've stuck by you through everything. Through nightmares and migraines, hell, puking vultures, when everybody else was calling you a ticking time bomb. So, if you're not innocent anymore, that's okay." He scoffed slightly with a bitter smile. "I mean, I killed my stepfather tonight. I'm no angel either."

"What?" I yelped. Alex looked at me sadly before turning and heading towards the window when sirens were heard. Oh, thank God. The police were on their way.

"I'm not innocent anymore, Alex." Bug blurted out. He swallowed and avoided my curious gaze. "Not with all of them inside me now."

"What?" Alex muttered before turning back around. He stared at him seriously. "With who inside you?"

"The rest of the Riverton Eight." I opened and closed my mouth, glancing between the two boys. "Even Jerome. " I didn't dare look at the dead teen in front of me. "All their souls are with me now." Bug smiled shakily with a tear running down his face.

Alex sighed, breaking their gaze as he looked away. "Bug, maybe you should sit down and take a few deep breaths." He advised, taking a few steps forward.

"You think I'm crazy?" Bug asked, but it sounded more like a statement as he smiled in disbelief. He looked at me. "Do you think I'm crazy?" I eyed him but didn't say anything. Him having other peoples' souls inside him was a bit far fetched. "I'm actually a lot smarter than I was yesterday. Let me ask you a question." He walked towards Alex, and Alex glimpsed at me before focusing on Bug who stopped in front of him. "Why is there blood on your left ear?"

"What?" Alex furrowed his eyebrows and lifted a hand to the bottom of his ear.

"The top." Alex took away his hand and glanced at the lack of blood. Bug reached forward and touched the top of Alex's ear, earning a hiss of pain as he pushed Bug's hand away. Bug held up his finger that was now covered in red blood. Alex saw this and shook his head with a scoff. "Almost like you were hit with a vase or something. Brandon told me to look for that."

"Bug, you are officially bat-shit nuts, and I'm sure that Lyn agrees with me." Alex stated, shaking his head with a smile of disbelief. I carefully stood up but stayed where I was as I watched the boys. "I scraped it climbing up the roof. Come on, let's get real here."

Bug stared off to the side with a thoughtful expression on his face. "Jay says that Ripper's getup was a costume for sure. Oh, and Brittany has run a timeline." He stated calmly, as if all of this was completely normal while I was standing there wondering whether I should just try my luck and bolt out of here. "You would've had enough time to kill Mom and put the knife in the bathroom sink while I was hiding under the bed, and Leah was outside in the car. And if Jerome came through the window when I was in the bathroom getting you water, you would've had time to stab him, and go downstairs and kill Paterson. You might have tried to kill me too. But if you'd heard Jerome and Lyn upstairs, you would've had to get up there before they called the cops." He finished and stared at Alex in astonishment.

"Lyn, do you believe this?" Alex questioned in disbelief while staring at me.

"I don't know…" I trailed off while watching them warily.

Alex scoffed and focused on Bug. "I could've killed you off earlier, remember?" He shook his head. "Bug, you've watched one too many Law and Order reruns." He walked past him, making Bug turn around to follow him. "Besides, I'm a little guy. You could beat me up in, like, 10 seconds."

"Unless you had the bad soul in you." Bug stated. I furrowed my eyebrows at that. Bad soul? What the hell is going on? Alex rubbed his neck slowly but didn't say anything. "And then you would fight like you were possessed. "

Alex froze. "Can't fucking believe you." He hissed before facing him and raising his voice, causing me to flinch from the loudness. "You're Adam Plenkov! The son of a mass murderer!"

Fuck, Alex told him about that? I've known about it for a few years but never told Bug because I didn't know what it would do to him. He was always so fragile, and I didn't know how he'd take knowing that his father was a murderer. Although, I guess the situation did call for the truth to be let out.

"Everyone in your house and all your friends, except me and Lynette, have been murdered." Alex continued angrily while slowly walking forward, pointing at Bug. "If there's a bad soul here, you have it. And you got it from your father." Bug watched him with wide eyes, taken back. "Maybe you have been in institutions. Maybe you have killed people, just in your last life. But you're too stupid and blind to see that." Alex lowered his voice. "Maybe they'll find your Ripper costume buried along with your stupid condor outfit. And they will come for you with torches."

Bug blinked a few times in shock. "W-What? I didn't bury any Ripper costume with my condor." He stammered.

"Okay, guys, stop! This is insane!" I finally spoke, stepping towards them. "None of us are murderers!"

I gasped when I felt something sharp hit my chest.

"That's where you're wrong, sweet cheeks." Alex said to me with a dark smirk, although it didn't sound like Alex. The voice was deeper and more menacing.

"L-Lyn?" Bug breathed weakly while staring at something below my neck. I looked down as well to the knife that was embedded into my chest. My legs gave out from under me, and I landed on the carpet where Bug immediately knelt down beside me, putting my head on his lap. "L-Lyn? N-No, stay awake. Stay awake!" He demanded desperately with tears running down his face.

That was the last thing I saw before everything went black.

* * *

Bug stared at the still body in shock before gently putting Lynette on the floor and slowly standing up. He clenched his jaw as he turned and stared murderously at Alex AKA the Ripper. "You son of a bitch!" He swung at Alex, only to miss and get hit by him instead. He stumbled back as Alex ripped the knife from Lyn's chest and stalked over, grabbing the back of Bug's head and tilting it up while he held the knife close to Bug's face.

"She had to go." Alex glanced back at the girl with a smirk before dropping it and focusing on Bug again. "You should know that evil doesn't forget betrayal, Plenkov."


	7. One Of Us Is Going Down, Or Maybe All

**Disclaimer: Only own Lynette.**

* * *

**Alternate Ending**

_"Sooner or later every teenager has to ask the question, 'How did I end up here?' I ended up with the Devil as a roommate, but I won't be fighting him alone. He might try and get out 24-7, but we'll be watching him 25-8."_

"Freezing my ass off out here." Alex complained as we strolled through the streets with Bug and Jerome. I had my arm linked with Bug's as we both kept our hands in our jacket pockets. "Thought this place was supposed to be hot."

"Musketeers don't complain." Bug reminded him.

"So what's the one thing musketeers do always, always?" Jerome questioned with a smile.

"Always?" Bug repeated.

"Always." Jerome confirmed, chuckling.

"Hmm." Alex pretend thought. "Watch each other's backs?"

"That's right." Jerome appraised in fake surprise.

"You guys do realize that the Musketeers were only three people, and there are way more than three people here, right?" I questioned in amusement with a smile as I leaned forward slightly to glance at them.

"Doesn't matter." Jerome stated while Bug gave me a small smile. "Friends watch each other's backs. Ain't that right, Bug?"

"That's right, guys." Bug confirmed, glancing behind him when honking was heard and moving both of us out of the way of the oncoming car.

Alex held out his hands after the car had raced through him and Jerome. "Watch the speed, asswipe!" Alex yelled after him.

"What's up, guys?" Jay asked as he joined us and held out a hand to do a high-five with Jerome.

"What's going on, Jay?" Jerome smiled.

"Just remember what Oscar Wilde said…" Bug began while I stared ahead at Penelope, Brandon, and Brittany who were walking in the road in front of us.

"What and who the fuck is Oscar Wilde Said?" Alex questioned in confusion, causing me laugh.

"'Friends stab you in the front.'" Bug continued as if Alex hadn't spoken.

There was some chuckling around before we all started vanishing one by one until I was the only one left.

"You know, I've always known your mind was interesting." I joked, earning a smile from him. "See you soon, Bug." I smiled before reaching up and kissing his cheek, disappearing.


End file.
